Graduate Studies

Tulane's Department of Chemistry is the ideal size for a graduate program-we are large enough to provide you with exciting research opportunities, yet small enough to treat you as an individual. We hope you will visit our campus to discuss how our graduate program fits with your research interests and career goals.

Tulane's graduate in chemistry offers a balance between coursework and research. During the first two semesters, in addition to starting courses, students meet with individual faculty members and select a dissertation research advisor. After the first year, emphasis shifts towards research.

Some special areas of faculty research are bio-organic, biophysical, physical inorganic, organometallic, synthetic organic, polymer material, surface chemistry, as well as crystallography, spectroscopy, quantum theory and statistical mechanics.

Completion of the Ph.D. degree has the following requirements:

Four core courses and two additional courses

Successful completion of six cumulative examinations

Presentation of a literature seminar and seminar attendance

A dissertation research prospectus

Progress in research

Oral defense of the dissertation research

An advanced degree in chemistry can provide access to many different career possibilities. Most of the Tulane chemistry graduates either continue research with post-doctoral appointments at well-known universities or establish careers at leading chemical and pharmaceutical companies.